County council has dropped the monthly Business Pulse Survey due to lack of participation

File Photo f Cobourg’s emergency homeless shelter/ former warming room.

By: Cecilia Nasmith, Northumberland 89.7 FM News.

Cobourg

A second consecutive month of poor response to its 310 Division St. Business Pulse Survey has resulted in Northumberland County council cancelling the initiative.

The monthly survey began soon after the county's homeless shelter at that Cobourg address opened in an effort to address the concerns surrounding businesses had in being located to close to that location. Two important considerations have since arisen.

One is the shuttering of the shelter's ground-floor drop-in warming-cooling hub and its transition to a higher-barrier shelter.

The other is a precipitous drop to the number of surveys received. In the last two consecutive months, only one respondent has participated. As each of that respondent's answers represents 100% of the sample, Associate Director of Housing and Homelessness Rebecca Carman noted earlier this month, the survey's value is minimal.

Carman told council Wednesday that perhaps 10 hours of staff time are expended monthly to conduct the survey and compile the results - “all the different pieces.”

“I appreciate the work – it was a good effort,” Cobourg councillor Lucas Cleveland said.

“Those 10 hours can go to a better project.”